We are almost at the end of another year. 2015 has been a great year for us and we are glad to have shared it with you all. The team at Building Block Associates would like to thank each and every foodservice operator who took the time to open and read our foodservices newsletter. We sincerely hope you found our content insightful.

In 2016 we promise to keep you engaged with creative and thoughtful content, industry updates, more special offers and much more. Also we will be launching our new management app for foodservice operators, more to come on that also in 2016.

In the meantime we would like to share our best of 2015 list with you all. This list is comprised of the most viewed top stories for 2015. Also if there is a topic you would like to see as a top story or have any questions, feel free to shoot me an email, here. Thanks again for your continued support.

Respectfully,

The Building Block Associates Team

5.The Toronto Food SceneToronto is very diverse; this diversity has helped to create a vast food scene in Toronto and across the GTA. Every wonder what foods locals across the GTA like to eat when dining out? Well I thought this question would make a great article for this week’s top story. But before we get into the meat and potatoes, let’s talk the numbers.

4.Millennials & Their Impact On Foodservice OperatorsWhy are they so important you may ask..? In Canada, the forecasts is 75% of the workforce will be millennials by the year 2028. Millennials currently bring in about 21% of all income earned in Canada, according to Stats Can data. That makes them a force of change with many industries trying frantically to learn more about millennials, how to hire, train, keeping them loyal and their eating habits are some of the things at top of mind for many foodservice operators.

3.Minimum Wage IncreaseMinimum Wage Increase, We knew it was gonna happen. The amount varies by Province. But in Ontario, it will be increased to $10.30 for students under 18, and $11.25 for adults as of October 1st, 2015. Since legislation has tied the minimum wage to inflation, you can expect this amount to only go up. For more details checkout the Service Canada website.

2.Grocery Stores Selling Beer!This is a topic I have wanted to touch on some weeks now. But decided to hold off until the government’s positioning was clearer. It will soon be legal for grocery store chains to sell alcohol in Ontario. This will apply to independent grocery retailers as well. Although they will be under strict guidelines and limited to roughly 279 six packs or 70 cases of beer per day.

1.Lowering Your Food CostsIn this weeks Social Chat, I would like to look at how lowering food costs can put more profit in your pocket. Restaurateurs should be aware of the importance of controlling costs to maintain profit. Food costs can quickly escalate in restaurant management. Unfortunately you don’t control the markets.

Until next time your customers want to know why they should spend money at your restaurant, bar or cafe. So give them the goods!